Individual power, energy, and authority (IPEA)

Humankind has discovered so much of the-objective-truth yet has developed so many diverse civilizations that most people, with perhaps 80 years expected individual life, have lost hope for personal liberty. In other words, while technology has advanced exponentially, scholars debate civic morality or "common good" imagined some 300 years ago, dampening enthusiasm for the next 80 years. The termination of today's end of hope is possible.

The mature human being is so physically and psychologically powerful that it takes about three decades for a well-coached and encouraged infant to acquire the understanding and intent to live a full life. The aware young adult has the individual power, energy, and authority (IPEA) to develop integrity. Most don’t; some think crime pays. But there are outliers who develop integrity.

“Integrity” exceeds honesty. Integrity requires five practices: 1), a) the work to comprehend an-objective-truth and understand how to benefit from the discover; b) when action is required but the-objective-truth is undiscovered, choose the action that most closely conforms to the theory of the-objective-truth, 2) behave so as to benefit from the-objective-truth; that is, neither initiate nor tolerate opposition to the-objective-truth, 3) public expression of the understanding and benefits that were discovered, and 4) open-mindedness for discovery that demands change in behavior in order to benefit from the-objective-truth.

Those who develop integrity also develop comprehensive fidelity. Its basis is the-objective-truth and fidelity extends, both respectively and collectively to self, to immediate family, to extended family and friends, to the people and nation, to humankind and the world, and to the universe.

When IPEA motivates integrity and fidelity, the individual, in every thought, word, and action, neither initiates nor tolerates harm. This practice is beyond intention, and if he or she errs, it’s because of oversight, such as consequences for another party. Erroneous opinion by the other party is never ignored; that is, fidelity requires collaboration for mutual understanding without coercion or force. On notice/awareness, the individual effects correction soon, if possible. Some error has consequences that prevent restoration, for example, death of a victim or perpetrator. With declining moral error, the person who practices fidelity may approach individual infallibility. As more individuals practice fidelity, humankind itself may begin an asymptotic approach to infallibility.

The individual manages the lesser authorities each human faces: appetites (banality), civilizations (coercion), government (power), and the unknowns (fear or doubt). Respecting the unknowns, the individual serenely develops his or her comforts and hopes. That is, every harmless religion flourishes in privacy and in sympathetic association.

Humankind is comprised of individuals who are at different chronologies and with different natural abilities, each living in a distinct civilization and culture. Therefore, the variations on acceptance/rejection/misuse of IPEA are as many as the people living at any moment. Moreover, it is important to recognize that humankind is divided: some are developing integrity and some not.

A transcending culture of mutual, comprehensive safety and security seems achievable if most humans accept IPEA and choose to develop integrity. Effecting this change worldwide seems remote. However, the USA was designed for IPEA. The first, legal sentence in the constitution for the USA, the preamble, asserts that the willing people authorize the laws and institutions for stated purposes, and among the articles is the authority to amend the constitution so as to increase integrity. By “willing people” I mean those citizens who trust-in and commit-to the agreement that is stated in the preamble and accept IPEA to develop comprehensive fidelity. The preamble addresses civic issues, leaving comforts and hopes respecting the unknowns for individual attention or none. When an article or amendment that follows the preamble does not comport to the preamble, it is in error. If the Supreme Court has an opinion that opposes the preamble, the opinion is in error.

With a majority of citizens accepting IPEA and developing integrity, the people/nation may approach infallibility.

These ideas have developed upon collaboration by about sixty people in public library meetings in Baton Rouge, LA, into our fifth year. Here, citizens are infamously divided: Democrat vs Republican; black vs white; African-American Christian vs perhaps all others; the poor vs the affluent; incorporated Baton Rouge vs the proposed St. George City. Each citizen is human and may both collaboratively and individually develop integrity. The key to the meeting progress has been collaborative listening.

We began with a proposal to consider being We the People of the United States as specified by the legal agreement that is offered by the preamble to the constitution for the USA. The collaboration developed the articulation that each individual has the power, energy, and authority to develop integrity and fidelity. So far, IPEA has been well received, but not by every hearer and reader.

Copyright©2018 by Phillip R. Beaver. All rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted for the publication of all or portions of this paper as long as this complete copyright notice is included. Updated on May 19, 2018